Slave: The Continuation
by ABLOOD-SUCKING BARON
Summary: The title says all. This is the continuation of Moncollefan365's "Slave". If you want to read the previous chapters read her fanfic. GaaXHina, KibaXKankuro, and ShikaXTem.
1. Truth

_ABLOOD-SUCKING BARON: Hey everyone! I want to give a big thanks to Moncollefan365 for giving me and Vampire cutie this chance to finish her story. (Does anyone know how how I can contact her? If your reading this, Vampire cutie, please pm me.) This chapter was given and has little to no changes. Next chapter will be my first go at the story. I understand that my style is different, but I promise to try to keep it as close as possible. Or at least make it as good as possible. I DON'T OWN NARUTO. NARUTO IS THE WORK OF MASASHI KISHIMOTO AND THIS PLOT BELONGS TO MONCOLLEFAN365._

The encounter with Sasuke the night before had unsettled Hinata and Gaara could tell. This fact made him nervous as he couldn't tell whether or not she was going to take the boy's thoughts seriously. Hinata had been the first person who had treated him like a person since his mother had died and he had been enslaved. He really didn't want to lose that.

Simultaneously Hinata was contemplating where to go from where they were now. She knew that realistically, she could not do what she really wanted to and release Gaara from his enslavement until she moved out of her father's house. Unfortunately she had not quite saved up enough money from her missions yet to afford that and she would not move out until she was sure she could support the both of them. In addition she was not certain that Gaara trusted her yet. He still was in the habit of calling her mistress on occasion, a habit that annoyed her immensely much to her dismay, and he still flinched every time she did something he wasn't used to. Couple those facts with the unrecognized feelings that she had been noticing lately and that lead to one very quiet and very contemplative Hyuuga.

After a couple hours of awkward silence between the two of them, with neither quite knowing what to do Gaara began to fidget. He didn't want to do anything without Hinata's permission however she seemed to be deep in thought and he didn't want to interrupt her either. This resulted in him defaulting to the only safe activity he knew, cleaning. The room wasn't particularly dirty, he had cleaned it recently after all, but Gaara never had any problem finding things to either straighten, dust, or just organize.

The odd part about this particular cleaning session was that Hinata did not seem to notice what he was doing. She just sat at her window seat looking out the window contemplatively.

Hinata had inkling as to what the new emotion she was experiencing in regards to Gaara was but she had to be sure. She didn't want to act on the emotion only to find out that it was just a more intense urge to protect and comfort him from the pain that he had gone through with his past master. That was why she was just looking out the window. She was contemplating whether or not she was truly in love with him.

By the time she had come to a conclusion Gaara had not only organized and straightened her entire room but he had organized, straightened and wiped down all of the counters and surfaces in her bathroom and was now sitting quietly on her bed watching her. Hinata immediately felt horrible realizing that she had neglected him for so long.

"I'm sorry Gaara I didn't mean to ignore you." She said quietly. Gaara shrugged in response.

"That's alright Hinata-sa—Hinata-chan, I like the mindless activity anyway." He replied. Hinata was a bit shocked that not only had he not put the expected sama after her name but that he had not stuttered the entire time he had spoken. This made her smile slightly, something that put him on edge for a reason he couldn't place.

Before Gaara could ask what she was smiling about Hinata was kissing him. It was not what he expected and quite honestly freaked him out. The last person who had kissed him like this had been his father, a couple months after enslaving him. She had taken the boy from last night's words seriously; she was treating him like he was actually a slave. When she pulled back Gaara was still in shock and frozen in place. This confused her slightly.

Gaara was acting as though he was afraid of her again but what had she done wrong? She touched his shoulder lightly causing him to flinch. "Gaara?" She became even more worried when he did not respond to her question. Had she somehow hurt him? The thought crossed her mind that perhaps he just wasn't used to human contact. But that couldn't be it, lately she, Kankuro and Temari had been lavishing physical affection on him. So why had he frozen up.

"So, what do you want to do?" She asked awkwardly trying desperately to get him to respond. What she received was not promising.

"Whatever you wish mistress." With this response Hinata realized her mistake. The only time Gaara seemed to revert to calling her mistress and acting the way he had the day she had first gotten him was when he was worried about her acting like his past master.

She wasn't sure how her kiss could have reminded him of that but that must have been what it was. He had been fine right up until she had kissed him.

"Gaara, did I do something to upset you?" The answer was obvious but she needed to hear it from him. Unfortunately he only shook his head no and resumed waiting for her instructions. Hinata sighed, how should she go about telling him she was sorry and that she wasn't going to act like his prior master?

"Gaara…I know I did something to upset you I just want to know what it was." There was still no response and now both of them were fidgeting awkwardly. Hinata sighed she should just apologize and try to get him to talk to her instead of waiting for him to tell her what she did wrong. She would rather not apologize without being positive of what she had done wrong but it looked like he wasn't going to tell her either way.

"Gaara, I don't know exactly what it was that your last master did to you but I'm not them. I'm sorry I upset you but you need to know that I'm not going to hurt you like they did." She said quietly. Gaara fought with himself for a good couple of minutes after she said this. A very small part of him, the part that had not given up hope that he would be freed from his enslavement when he had lived with his father, believed her when she said this. Another significantly larger portion was too world weary to just trust her just like that. He bit the inside of his lip nervously.

"Why did you kiss me just now?" He finally asked quietly. He needed to know as the smaller voice in his head was now whispering things that he wasn't sure he wanted to consider just now. The question would, in a way solve everything for Gaara, as any master like the boy wished Hinata to be would probably punish him harshly for the insolence. Hinata just looked at him curiously though.

It finally dawned on her what she had done wrong. She had never given consideration to the fact that some slaves were used in ways that were better left unthought about in her opinion, and the idea that Gaara could have been used in that way had honestly never crossed her mind. It begged the question at this point; did Gaara even know what love was anymore? Would he be able to reciprocate her feelings even if he wanted to?

"I kissed you because I love you and wanted you to know that." She said matter of factly. Anyone who knew her would probably have been shocked that she had not stuttered at all while uttering this but Hinata, by this point at least, had realized that how she said it would not matter. Gaara would most likely react badly if she was more nervous and so she kept herself as calm as possible while waiting for her response. This was no small feat as her heart was beating at perhaps a hundred miles an hour and she felt as though she were going to hyperventilate at any moment.

Gaara was stunned for a few moments before he regained his composure. Aside from his family members not one person had ever told him that they loved him. He didn't even know if he could love her back but really didn't want to upset her too much. In a way it was touching that even though he was the one who should be apologizing she was the one saying she was sorry to him for scaring him. He had been hurt so much by his father that it was hard for him to believe that anyone would treat him kindly anymore, but perhaps, just perhaps Hinata would be the one to help him get over that fear of trusting people.

Before he could find a way to respond to that without making it seem like he was rejecting her Hinata was already speaking. "I know you will probably have a hard time loving me right now given what you've been through but I really want you to know that I care about what happens to you and I'm not going to let anyone hurt you anymore." Gaara could hear the determination and honesty in her voice and to his great surprise he began to tear up a bit from it.

The next thing Hinata knew Gaara had his arms wrapped around her middle and was crying into her shirt. She let him, thinking it better to let him get it all off his chest rather than try to deny that he was in pain.

"It'll be alright Gaara, I may make some mistakes but when I do you just have to tell me what's wrong so I know. I can't keep from hurting you if I don't know what's bothering you after all." Gaara nodded his head softly to let her know he understood. She stayed with him like that until he fell into a somewhat restless slumber, half falling asleep herself when her cell phone started to ring.

"Hello?" Hinata's eyes widened as the caller explained that he had a mission for her and gave the quantity of the reward money that each member of her team would receive. The quantity was definitely high enough for her and Gaara to live comfortably in a small apartment for quite a while.

"I see, when do we leave?"

The next day brought sunshine and better moods for both Gaara and Hinata, at least until the latter of the two told her companion that she would be leaving mid-day for an extended period of time. She wouldn't tell him why she had to leave only that she would only be gone a couple of days and she had already made plans with Kiba for him to stay over there for the time being.

Gaara was a bit confused at that last point, as Hinata had had no problem leaving him to his own devices in her room in the past. But she explained that if he stayed here he wouldn't be able to leave the house while she was gone and would most likely have trouble getting food and other necessities. That he would be much better off by Kiba's for the trip because not only would he be around his brother and sister constantly but he would still have free reign of the apartment and town.

In her own mind Hinata added that to be honest she didn't quite trust her father or someone else in the manor to not do something cruel to Gaara while she was gone. And that would most likely set her back in her efforts to make him feel better so it was better if he didn't stay there.

Thus the two packed their bags and made their way over to Kiba's apartment. Surprisingly enough when they walked in there were no scarring antics being performed by the owner of the apartment and his boyfriend. They were actually just sitting on the couch like vegetables watching what appeared to be a romantic comedy. Hinata left Gaara to announce his entrance by himself, realizing that she was running a bit late due to how long it took her to find the needed materials. A mischevious grin came to Gaara's face as soon as the door was closed behind her and he made his way into the kitchen to get the jump on his brother for once.

Two ice cubes were procured and before either of the other male's knew what had happened were promptly shoved into the backs of their shirts. Gaara snickered as they both squealed like little girls and tried to get the offending object out of their clothing. Kiba's came out easy enough as he had been wearing a simple t-shirt and jeans but Kankuro's hoodie appeared to be trapping the ice cube right in the one area of his back that the male couldn't reach. Soon both Gaara and Kiba were in stitches on the floor.

"Yeah yeah, laugh it up. What's up squirt?" Kankuro growled finally getting the now mostly melted cube out of his shirt.

"Hinata just left" Gaara stated simply. Kiba nodded understandingly and gestured for Gaara to have a seat. He swiftly sat on the couch, Kankuro and Kiba sitting beside him to continue the movie. As Gaara watched the movie he couldn't help but let his eye wonder to the door.

_A/N: So I added two sentences at the end, that's not enough to ruin anything. Next chapter I'm going to work my butt off to make as good as possible! Wish me luck!_

_-Baron_


	2. Longing

_A/N: Thanks for the support guys, much love to you all! This is my first try, so please bear with me. Take note, that I'm quite the romanticist and what I do is usually suppose to be, well, romantic. Moncollefans365's work is a lot more down to earth than mine so I'll try my best to keep it so. Wish me luck! Thank you. This might be short… I DON'T OWN NARUTO AND THE PLOT BELONGS TO MONCOLLEFAN365!_

Gaara's eyes split open, darting everywhere around the room, for a moment unsure of where he was. His heart was racing, his body beaded with nervous sweat, strained heaves leaving his chapped lips. There was that familiar pounding in his skull, it was like a team of horses were let loose and were stampeding over the sensitive tissue of his brain, crushing nerves, leaving hoof marks that would fill with blood. He lifted a trembling hand to clutch at his brick red hair, the other tightening its grip on the innocent blanket. He took shaky breathes to calm himself, wanting to slow down the rate of his heart, afraid if he didn't his heart would surely explode inside his chest. As the precious organ beat at a more appropriate rate Gaara's eyes roamed his surroundings. He began to recall everything now. He wasn't in Hinata's room, resting beside her with her arms holding him securely, bringing him a sense of security he hadn't felt in a long time. The room wasn't filled with the feminine ornaments that Hinata kept, but decorated with the basic necessities for a comfortable stay. There was a wardrobe, a desk with a lamp sitting on its edge, shelves that barely had anything, and a vanity table with an old fashion water basin to wash his face. The attached mirror of the vanity table reflected his image and the words 'hollow and ghostly' flitted through his mind. He looked beyond pale, leaning more on translucent, and his eyes looked sunken with no light reflecting from them. _I look…dead. _Gaara carefully lifted himself out of the bed and let his feet make contact with soft carpet, it surprised him how different his life had become since Hinata became his new master, well, mistress. He went to the mirror and examined himself. He was no longer an emaciated boy that feared being tormented by his own father every moment of the day, but a young man that over time gained a healthy weight for his age from Hinata's care. It was all because of Hinata.

_It's alright Gaara._

His hand flew to his face, his finger tips tracing the dark circles as he thought of Hinata's voice. He hadn't slept well, and whatever sleep he did get was due to the fact that at the pinnacle of his dreams Hinata would appear, but the reason he'd woken up so disoriented was all because _**of **_Hinata. She had been in his dream, her appearance stirring a mixture of confusing emotions that were plaguing him now. Gaara moved away from the mirror and dug through his wardrobe for clean garments before heading down to Kiba's kitchen to fetch himself breakfast. He stepped out of the guest room and smelled something wonderful wafting through the air. He moved towards the smell and ended up in the kitchen, Kiba flipping pancakes onto a china plate.

"You up already, Gaara?" Kiba turned away from the oven and looked at the clock drilled into the wall. "Geez, man it's barely seven!"

"But, you're up too." Gaara raised a non-visible brow at the brown haired male.

"Lost a bet to Kanky is all. Since I lost that means I have to make breakfast before he wakes up." Kiba shrugged his broad shoulders and resumed making pancakes. Gaara grabbed a plate and glass from the cabinet, placing them on the marble table top while Kiba with the spatula gave him a small stack of pancakes on top. "Make sure to eat a lot, 'cause if you don't Hinata's going to hang me for thinking I starve you. Not that she'd actually do that, but seeing her mad is not on my schedule." Kiba chuckled, rubbing the back of his head. Gaara sat down and commenced eating, his mind feeling a jumbled mess due to a certain pearly-eyed girl.

Two pancakes down, one more to go, the last one had a smile made of chocolate chips. He took his knife and cut out the right eye first, then the left before carving the mouth out to calm his mind a little. "Is that suppose to be the Joker?" Kiba asked as he sat across from him with his own plate of pancakes.

"No." His answer emotionless.

"Gaara, are you okay? You've been here a few days and I've noticed you've been really cold, man. You didn't even seem to hear Kanky talking to you yesterday. What's up?" Kiba's stare was full of concern for the red head. Gaara thought of answering and just when he opened his mouth the door bell rang. "I'll be back." Kiba rushed to the door and saw the world's smartest, laziest, man. "Yo Shikamaru! What are you doing here? Pretty early for you isn't it?"

"My mom planned on going shopping with Temari today and would have ended up dragging me if they saw me doing nothing." Shikamaru sighed.

"So you woke up this early to escape to my house? I'm not sure whether I'm cool with that or annoyed at you for thinking you're free to come whenever you feel like it." Shikamaru gave a small grunt before walking passed Kiba and into the kitchen, already heading for the plate of pancakes Kiba served himself. Kiba followed him and glared.

"Hm?" Shikamaru raised a questioning brow, too busy to ask as his mouth was full.

"Oh don't mind me! I'm just watching the lazy-ass who's using my house as a hideout and eating my pancakes is all." A vein bulged on the side of his temple and he gave a forced smile.

"If I said 'thank you' would that make you feel better?" Shikamaru asked after swallowing.

"No." The genius just shrugged then resumed eating Kiba's pancakes.

Gaara had watched with slight amusement, happy to have something to distract him for a while. Just as he stood to wash his plate Kankuro came down the stairs, a yawn escaping him.

"Good morning Kiba, Gaara…Shikamaru? When did you get here?" Kankuro waved at him and Shikamaru waved back.

"Mom, Temari, shopping, and didn't want to go." Shikamaru summarized.

"Oh. That's nice of Kiba to let you hide here then."

"Yeah, Shikamaru, isn't that nice of me?" Kiba turned to the fridge to fetch himself the milk to make some cereal. Kankuro took a whiff of the room and began to drool.

"Hey, Kiba where's the pancakes? I won the bet so you had to make me some pancakes."

"Well, you're going to have to settle for cereal cause the genius over there ate the last of it, and I used up all the mix." The room fell silent as everyone felt a chill run about them.

"Shikamaru…YOU ATE MY PANCAKES!" Kankuro shouted as he fell to his hands and knees as fat dramatic tears fell down his unpainted face.

"Stop crying Kanky and pass me some frootloops from the pantry." Kiba barked.

"Fine! I'm still pissed though! Just watch yourself pineapple head, I will have my revenge!" Kankuro shouted before turning and running up the stairs. A silent pause before he ran back down and grabbed the box of colorful deliciousness and placed it in front of Kiba. "Almost forgot." Then he ran back up the stairs.

"He is really something, Kiba. How the hell did you fall in love with a guy like that?" Shikamaru asked as he tried to stifle a laugh.

"I have no way to answer that, Shikamaru. I don't even know how it even happened." Kiba sighed. "Love is really confusing. How are you and Temari anyway?"

"We're doing fine, we're thinking of making our relationship official to my parents."

"Wow. You sure you're mom will be cool with it? She's quite the picky person."

"I'm sure that she'll accept her since she adores her, and whatever my mom's fine with my pop's agrees too." Shikamaru answered as he and Kiba, with his bowl of cereal, made their way to the living room to watch some television to pass the time. Gaara stood beside the sink, thinking about their small conversation, the water dripping from his fingers.

'_Love is confusing? Is that why I… Am I…?' _An image of Hinata ran in his head and all the jumbled and knotted feelings around his brain he'd been following seemed to lead to one conclusion. The feelings, the dreams, the confusion and worry made sense now.

He was in love.

He turned and headed for the living room, his feet felt like lead as he approached Kiba and Shikamaru from behind the couch. Gaara stepped around the couch and blocked their view, sitting on the ground, legs crossed with a determined expression chiseled onto his face.

"Ugh, Gaara? Do you need something?" Kiba asked, a raised brow at the childish way Gaara was seated on the ground.

"You both are in, um, love and I…uh need some… advise." Shikamaru had to strain his hearing to hear that last bit, but Kiba heard it perfectly. Gaara dropped his gaze to the ground, embarrassed about asking for help.

"So, I take it that you like someone?" Kiba leaned back. "Mind me asking who it is exactly?" Gaara's head sunk a little and mumbled under his breath. "Huh?"

"Hinata."

"Hinata? We'll I'm not surprised, and now I understand why you've been moping around." Kiba smiled.

"What exactly is it that you need help on?" The genius got to the point. "Is this a one-sided thing?"

"No, it's mutual. She told me that she loves m-me."

"Did you tell her how you feel about her?" Gaara kept quiet. "No, huh. The only thing I can tell you is to tell her because the sooner you do the quicker you can be together."

"But what about this?" Gaara rubbed the edge of his heart shaped tag, almost lovingly. "I am not free to love her if I am a slave." Shikamaru and Kiba looked at each other. Their situations were similar, but Gaara's was a little more tricky to take care of. Kiba lived alone and had no one to tell him 'no' when he freed Kanky, and Shikamaru's parents were harsh, but understanding. There were many things that would need to be done if Hinata and Gaara were ever to be happy together.

"Okay Gaara, this is what you are going up against." Kiba started. "First of all, the most important thing to do is have Hinata set you free. Shouldn't be hard since she loves you. Second, once free you both are going to have to runaway since her old man isn't going to be happy when he learns his eldest daughter is in love with an ex-slave. Three, make sure to get a job so that you can support yourself and Hinata. Understand?" Gaara nodded.

"That's actually pretty decent, but there are still a few loopholes that need to be taken care of, and all possible situations must be taken into account so that proper precaution can be taken in case things don't go so well." Kiba rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Hm, but we can take care of the specifics later. I'm going to go take a bath. Anyone have to use the bathroom before I go?"

"Don't you have two bathrooms?" Shikamaru asked as Kiba stood to head for the upstairs shower.

"Yeah, it's just that when someone flushes in any of the bathrooms the water in the shower turns ice cold. "So Gaara you got to go?"

"No."

"Shikamaru?"

"Why the hell not, it'll save me the trouble of waiting for you to finish." Shikamaru stood and headed for the bathroom on the first floor. "Bathroom's down the second hall, right?"

"Yeah, just watch you're step 'cause I haven't replaced the light bulb so the light doesn't work."

"'Kay." Shikamaru lifted himself and slowly walked down the hall and took a right. Gaara stood from where he was seated and was about to sit on the couch to watch some television when he and Kiba heard a loud grunt. "Aw, what the hell!"

"What happened?" Kiba and Gaara rushed into the hall only to find Shikamaru's face stuck to see-through tape that was latched across the bathroom door.

"Holy shit, it actually worked!" Kankuro cheered from around the corner where he stuck out his head.

"KANKURO!"

"PAYBACK'S A BITCH, AIN'T IT SHIKA!" Kankuro laughed as he ran down the hall.

_A/N: I AM DONE! It is short, I know. I hope I didn't disappoint anyone. I think I described a lot more than usual, but that was because I wanted to make it longer. Oh well… Sorry for the late updates. There is no excuse for it, and I feel bad for leaving you guys hanging, but thanks anyway. Much love to you all. Until the next my dear readers!_

_-Baron_


	3. Confession part 1

_A/N: Greetings! I be-ith back from the dead! Not really, I just got my baby back from repair and working non-stop to update all my stories. There is some good news! It seems I printed out the manuscript for this story at some time, so now I can keep going without worrying about what was suppose to happen next! Thank you guys for still hanging with me. I DON'T OWN NARUTO AND THE PLOT BELONGS TO MONCOLLEFAN365!_

Hinata was surprised at what she had learned on her mission, it would definitely interest Tsunade. Especially since a nation's future was at stake. Shino had accompanied her on it, and being one of her closest friends she explained her plight about Gaara, and asked on what she should do. He remained quiet for a long time before answering. "Hinata, give him time. He has to fight his own demons first." The Hyuuga heiress didn't understand, but let it go. She's learned that Shino was usually right. After two weeks of reconnaissance they were finally returning to the Fire Country, already seeing the gates of Konohagakure as they slowed their speed. It was good to be home. "I'll drop off our report, you go see Kiba." Shino announced as they just passed the gate. Hinata asked if he was sure but he was already heading toward the Hokage tower. Hinata smiled before she headed for Kiba's house in a sprint, excited to see a certain red-head.

"Hey, Gaara. Gaara. Gaara! GAARA!" Kiba shouted directly into his ear. Gaara jumped out of his bed, one hand covering his wounded ear. His ear was still ringing when he addressed the Inuzuka. "I have some good news!"

"Hm?" Gaara ignored his stinging ear and focused on his host. He wondered what it could be? If he was joking Gaara was definitely not amused, he just wanted to return to thinking. He had to make sure his plan was perfect or else he'll never have the courage to tell Hinata that he loved her. "Well?" Gaara raised a non-existent brow and frowned, his hand still rubbing his ear.

"Aren't you impatient. I guess this is a good sign, you're no longer acting like a complete wuss." Kiba smiled, his arms crossed over his chest, as he looked at Gaara proudly. "If you keep it up you might end up being a total bad-ass." Kiba laughed. Gaara smiled at the compliment. "Come on, I'll show you."

They exited the guest room and headed down the stairs to the living room. Gaara saw nothing out of the ordinary until he saw a feminine figure come from out the kitchen to the living room. She moved toward him, her arms extended to wrap him in her warm and tender embrace. He was still for a moment, his old fears resurfacing, but it was overridden by the new emotion he'd been dwelling on since he'd discovered it. He took a calming breath before he wrapped her in his, he suddenly felt vulnerable, but it wasn't bad. It was like being free for short time. He guessed that was the power of love.

"Gaara." Hinata looked him in the eyes, surprised that he hadn't jumped back or become terrified, but glad none the less. She stepped back and examined him, and smiled as a result. "You look better than when I left you. Has Kiba been training you to fight?" She asked when she felt the developing muscles of his arms, and the pectoral muscles when he hugged her back.

"He taught me a little." Gaara answered, his eyes never leaving her face. She seemed different to him. Had her eyes ever been that mesmerizing? Had her cheeks grown pinker? He looked her over quickly, she looked the same, but there something different. Her eyes were the same lavender, her skin still seemed of porcelain, and her hair was the same dark shade with natural blue highlights. All were the same as when she left, she just seemed more, he thought for a moment, beautiful to him than before. Was that unusual?

"Thank you Kiba-kun, for taking care of him. If I had left him at the Hyuuga compound I'm positive that my father or Neji would have mistreated him. I don't want him to go through that."

"Welcome. It was nice havin' him over, the guy is a quick learner when it comes to jutsu and ninjutsu, needs a bit of work on taijutsu though. Wouldn't mind having him on our team when we go out on missions. Gaara has some real potential hidden away, just needs someone to help him tap and refine the chakra is all. Oh, hey, how did your mission go anyways? Any problems?"

"No, not on our end at least. I'm not suppose to speak about the mission, but I'm sure that Tsunade-sama will fill you later."

"If you can't tell me that means it's some real serious shit. Man, now I really want to know! I wonder what it could be? Mind giving me a hint?"He smiled playfully at Hinata but sighed in defeat when she nodded negatively. Kiba pondered what it could be, rubbing his chin with his thumb and index finger. "I guess I'll wait 'til then. Oh well. You don't want anything to drink? To eat? You just got back after all."

"Oh, no thanks. I'm fine, I have to go home to report to father unless he'll throw a fit and terrorize everyone because of it. Thanks again, Kiba." Both walked walked and talked as they headed for the door, giving Gaara time to gather his things, and giving Hinata time to rest for a bit. When he was ready, Hinata gave Kiba a hug which he returned happily, shaking Gaara's hand and promising to tell Kankurou he had said bye.

"Hey, Gaara!" Kiba called before Gaara left through the door. "Hinata-chan, can you give us a second?"

"Huh? Sure." Hinata left first to wait outside patiently for Gaara, who walked back to Kiba's door.

"Remember what we talked about Gaara, 'kay? We'll be ready by Thursday, Shikamaru, Temari, Kanky, and me will be waiting down by the waterfall I showed you." Kiba whispered to the red-head, his eyes shifting from him to Hinata occasionally to assure she wasn't trying to listen in.

"But that only gives me two days." Gaara answered nervously, his eyes showing his distress to the Inuzuka.

"I know, but Shikamaru got his hands on the latest mission charts and it appears that Hiashi will be leaving to Iwa in the Earth Country for diplomatic reasons on Thursday. He won't be back until Sunday! Once he leaves you can head out, giving you three days to get as far away as possible."

"I'm not sure…" Gaara's eyes dropped to the ground, his fingers curling into his palm. He'd been thinking about this for the past few days, but no matter how much he tried to convince himself it would work there was still that small part of him that was telling him that he would fail. The risk was high, not just for him, but for Hinata as well. "Things can go wrong."

"Gaara, do you want to be happy?" Kiba's tone was dead serious, his eyes boring into Gaara.

"Y-yes." Gaara responded weakly, making Kiba growl in frustration.

"Are you sure, 'cause right now it doesn't seem like it. I'll ask you again. Do you want to be happy?"

"Yes." Again Gaara answered, but with more force.

"Good, but it doesn't come easy. I understand the risk, Hinata will too once you explain, but that's just part of finding it. Happiness is something everyone strives for, we all fight for it. It's like freedom Gaara, once you taste it, you don't want to let it go. Are you willing to face the world for it, Gaara? And think _real_ hard because it's not just you two in risk, it's also us. I sure as hell won't go along with this if your not in it." There was silence between them, Kiba watched Gaara's face transition to uncertainty, worry, then a sort of calm.

"Yes."

"Good. Remember, Thursday. Make sure you pull yourself together and confess to that girl before then so you can prepare." Gaara nodded, his face serious and confident. Kiba smiled proudly at him. "See you, Gaara." Kiba retreated into his home, Gaara stared at the door before turning toward Hinata and walked to her side. The days where he would walk behind her were over, now he wanted to stand beside her.

They had walked to the Hyuuga compound, Hinata asking him about his stay and he would answered slowly, not wanting to give away his nervousness. He walked somewhat stiffly beside her, his tag clicking against it's hook. He looked at the many homes that were lined neatly against the trail, their clear bright colors dull now that the sun was sinking, a pink tint turning blood red on the darker toned homes. That's what he continued to look at, the fancy bleeding homes spreading ominous shadows on the ground, the bare-branched trees reaching into the sky to claw at the darkening sky. _'The sooner the better.' _Gaara's hands felt tingly, the palms cold and sweaty. Hinata looked at him, found him staring into space, his forehead creased in contemplation. "Gaara, are you okay?"

"Uh, y-yes. I'm fine." Hinata raised a fine brow at him, he was lying. She stopped and stared at him.

"Gaara, are you lying?" She wasn't asking out of curiosity, it was more out of concern. He looked pale, almost grayish to her, and his eyes darted everywhere and avoided looking at her. "Gaara?" She stood in front of him and would not stop staring until he told her.

"I…uh…" He could feel cold sweat begin to trickle down the back of his neck, his heart rate speeding up insanely, and his face feeling hot. _'Tell her, just tell her! How hard can it be? It's only eleven words long. Come on! Just say it!' _His eyes finally landed on her, his eyes gleamed at her, determined, he licked his chapped lips and swallowed whatever had been balled in his throat. He braced his body unnecessarily when he opened his mouth. "Hinata-chan, I don't want to be your slave!" Gaara sucked in a breath, his eyes had shut when he shouted it out, an invisible weight lifting from his shoulders. He parted his lips for the other half. "Because I lo-" He looked around. Hinata was gone.

_A/N: This chapter is so short! I'm sorry that I'm taking forever, I'm trying to update all my stories at the same time. This chapter was suppose to be longer, but I ended up splitting it into two chapters. Well, hopefully I'll have a longer one next time. _

_-Baron_


	4. Confession part 2

_A/N: Sorry for the lack of updates, but I'm not going to keep you waiting so here's that update you've been waiting for. I DON'T OWN NARUTO AND THE PLOT BELONGS TO MONCOLLEFAN365!_

Hinata sighed, her heart pounding in her chest, wrenching painfully. Did she upset Gaara somehow? She didn't know, but what she did know was that she ran out of fear of what else he was going to say to her. And now here she was, at Oriel's club, sulking as she waited patiently for her cup of green tea. Hinata shuffled her feet a bit, her hands clutching the edge of her favorite lavender jacket, too absorbed in her thoughts to hear the entrance of the hall ring the hanging bell.

"Hinata? What are you doing here?" The voice surprised Hinata.

"Temari-chan?" Both stared at each other for a moment before Hinata scrambled to invite the older female to join her. "So, Temari, what brings you here?" Hinata asked, at that moment Oriel had arrived to place the ordered green tea before her.

"Well, I come here every Tuesday for the club's special Angel Cake Supreme. Now it's your turn to answer my question, why are you here and looking like you want to puke your guts out?" Temari eyed Hinata, every motion noted and stored away for further analysis. When Hinata just looked at her cup, then shifting her gaze left and right Temari cleared her throat to have her focus.

"Um, I sort of have a problem, but you don't have to worry about it." Temari's gaze intensified on her, making her shift nervously in her seat and grab her tea to sip.

"Tell me, does this have to do with my little brother?" By Hinata's extreme blush she guessed she had hit the mark. "Okay, so what happened between the two of you?" Temari crossed her arms, ready to press the heiress until she got the wanted information, especially now that a plan had been set into motion. Oh yeah, she knew about the escape plan since Shikamaru had warned her of what might happen if things didn't go smoothly and given her details of how things where going to happen. Right now Temari wanted to hear what had transpired between the two so she could help patch things up, she wanted this plan to go off without a hitch, after all she did care for their happiness, especially Gaara's. "Well?"

"Y-you see, this afternoon, after picking up Gaara from Kiba's I realized that Gaara had been acting strangely."

"Strangely? How?" Hinata gulped, her hands gripping each other, rubbing together to warm her freezing flesh.

"When we were walking I noticed that he wasn't talking much, not that he isn't usually like that, but this time he was dead silent. His face was abnormally serious and focused, almost angry looking." Hinata felt a cold sweat begin at her temples, running down her spine as she continued on, her voice raising with each words. "I asked what was wrong and he answered that he no longer wants to be my slave." She couldn't look at Temari anymore, she didn't want the older female to see the way her eyes were beginning to water, or the way she tried to swallow the ball that constricted her throat.

"Isn't that great? I mean that way he'd be free to be with you."

"Th-that's true, and I would love that. I really would, but the way he stared at me was like...like...I don't know how to explain it. There was something in his eyes, some intense emotion, like he was angry at me. I think he was going to tell me something more, but I was too shocked and hurt to listen and ended up running here." Hinata's face felt hot, she felt really embarrassed sharing all of this with Temari. No one said anything for a while, giving time for both time to think. Temari took advantage of the momentary break to order her cake and a cup of black tea and to extend her time to think.

"I see..." Temari rubbed her chin thoughtfully, thinking on Hinata's situation and on how to help the girl move along in the right direction. Being Gaara's older sister, she understood what he was trying to do, but because he was terrible at explaining his feelings he ended up confusing the poor girl, having her misunderstand him. "Look, Hinata, I get that you were scared because of what he said, but you have to understand that Gaara isn't good with getting his feelings across to others. Even I, who's his sister, find it difficult to get what he wants to explain. It takes patience, a lot of it, and his facial expressions don't help either. What you confused for anger was actually him being extremely focused, he doesn't have a wide variety of faces, and the few that he does have are often misinterpreted badly. Have you ever thought about asking for a reason?"

"No," Hinata sighed, "and now I feel terrible in not having enough faith in him and being too stupid to ask for an explanation. I wonder what he was going to say if he was that focused about it? I'm so stupid for not understanding him!"

"You shouldn't beat yourself up about it, in every relationship one must take baby steps with each other." Temari responded after taking a sip of her tea. "So what are you going to do now?"

"I have to find Gaara and apologize to him for being rude in running away and not listening to what he had to say. After apologizing I'm going to give him his freedom and see what happens from there." Hinata replied, smiling when Temari gave her an encouraging grin. She finished her green tea and paid her bill, adding a few extra bills as tip. "Thank you, Temari."

"Welcome, and when you see him remind him that the deadline is Thursday."

"Thursday?"

"Just forget about it. Good luck." Temari waved as Hinata left, sipping away her tea and enjoying her angel cake. "These two...really love can be so troublesome sometimes." Temari sighed but ended up laughing when she realized that she sounded like a certain lazy shinobi.

"Found you, come on. My parents are expecting us right now." A figure said from the club's entrance.

"Okay, okay! I'm going!" Temari smiled as she got up, paid her bill and walked up to the tall masculine figure beside her. "How do you think it will go Shikamaru? Think they'll approve?"

"Hm...everything will be fine." He replied blandly.

"And if they didn't?" This time Shikamaru was silent for a moment.

"Then we'll still be a troublesome couple, despite their disapproval." Temiri couldn't stop the giggle that passed her lips, even covering her mouth didn't help. She adored the blush that had spread over his face. "You're such a troublesome woman." Shikamaru grumbled.

"And you are my troublesome man."

...

Hinata went back to where she had left Gaara to begin her search, because it was obvious he wouldn't stay out there waiting for her to come back. It was already dark out now, and she couldn't tell which way he could have gone, so she thought of where he could have headed. There were a few options, actually Gaara only had three... He could have gone back to the Hyuuga compound which was very unlikely since he would only receive hostility, then there was Shikamaru's place but that option was thrown out since Gaara doesn't even know where it is, so the only option left and most likely was, Kiba's house. Hinata made her way to her friend's home, hoping that Gaara really was there and didn't decide to do something crazy, like run away on his own.

...

Gaara sat up in his guest room again, his elbows on his knees as his hands cradled his face, just staring at the wall as he waited patiently for his heart to stop throbbing painfully. When Hinata had run away he had felt so hurt by her rejection that he crawled back wounded to Kiba's house to find some sort of comfort. At first the Inuzuka had been surprised to find him outside his door, but was shocked at the development Gaara's confession had taken. Kiba reasoned that Hinata had just overreacted was all, which did little to make him feel better, but that was all he could hold onto. Even at that moment Gaara was hoping she was coming for him, or was that wishful thinking? He didn't know, and he rather not develop high hopes unless he wants there to be a chance of them being dashed entirely. He sighed, he'd been sitting on his bed for so long that the light from outside no longer lit the room, and he was too busy sulking to get up and turn on the light. _What if she did just overreact? But if it was actually a rejection, what will I do?_ Gaara ruffled his hair furiously as he thought. _This isn't helping, if anything it's confusing me farther... but I really want to know. _He was taken away from his thoughts when he heard a tap on the guest room's door.

"Yes?" Gaara responded coarsely as he had no urge to get up to answer the door. He let his body fall onto the bed, his hands behind his head as he squinted at the ceiling, waiting for someone to answer. The reply he got was the creak of the door as it opened slowly. He turned his head a bit and upon seeing the figure turn on the light he bolted up. "Hinata?"

"Thank goodness your here!" Hinata gave a relieved sigh and smile, her body lurching forward but returned to its post by the door. She was looking directly at him, but looked down at the ground when the reason for why she was there caught up with her. Occasionally she would look through her bangs to see Gaara's shocked expression, but she didn't raise her head until his shock changed into something pained. She had only caught a glimpse as he turned his head away. "I'm sorry."

"For what? You did nothing wrong, if anything I should apologize for my behavior earlier. It wasn't something a slave should ask their master."

"Don't!" Gaara was thoroughly shocked when he felt her presence beside him, her hands forcing him to look at her. "You did nothing wrong. I'm not angry, on the contrary, I'm happy!"

"Happy for asking you to free me?" He felt so confused, more so than before. "Then why did you leave?"

"Uh, well, you see...I was afraid. I had misunderstood what you were trying to tell me and ended up leaving before you could finish, because I thought you were angry with me. I know that sounds ridiculous, but it's true and that's why I came to say sorry. You have every right to want your freedom, and I want you to know that you have it." Her hands no longer forced his face to look at her, but reached the clip of Gaara's collar and unlatched it, placing it in his hands to observe.

"You're giving me my freedom?"

"Yes, and to be honest...ever since I returned from my mission I had intended to free you. Not this soon, because I was hoping to build our relationship up some more." Hinata's face became flushed as she confessed this, but also because she was happy to have the misunderstanding between them cleared up.

"Hinata?"

"Hm?"

"I want to tell you something, it's from earlier, is it okay?"

"Of course, no need to ask Gaara." She watched him closely, observing how his features turned very intense, almost fierce, before the clenched muscles in his face relaxed and he smiled up at her with a faint tint in his cheeks.

"I love you."

_A/N: Okay, done! So happy! I will be updating the other stories shortly, I am so sorry for taking forever! Thanks for the reviews and sticking with me! Lots of love to you guys!_

_-Baron_


	5. Freedom part 1

_A/N: Hello Slave fans, new and old, I am sad to say that Slave: The Continuation will be coming to an end soon. Just one more chapter to go! I DON'T OWN NARUTO AND THE PLOT BELONGS TO MONCOLLEFAN365!_

"I love you." Hinata smiled at Gaara warmly, her eyes drifting down to see his hands holding hers. She gave them a light squeeze.

"I love you too." Hinata responded, causing Gaara's heart to accelerate in joy, his soft smile broadening meanwhile. He's never had those words spoken to him, much less ever said them to anybody, and in all honesty he doubted he would ever hear them, but it seemed the fates had a different plan for him. He was happy, so much so that he couldn't find anything else to say to her. He opened his mouth, but shut it when he couldn't find the words to explain to her how she was making him feel. Hinata wanted to giggle, finding Gaara to have an extremely cute side when nervous. One actually escaped when he continued to open and close his mouth, absolutely speechless. Her giggles ceased when she eyed his lip, pale and smooth, recalling the one time she had kissed him to paralyze him long enough to take away the Monopoly game board. It was a brief touch of the lips, feather light, and impossible to remember what they felt like. Subconsciously she leaned in and kissed his cheek. At first Gaara stiffened in surprise, but relaxed when Hinata leaned her head against his shoulder. She shut her eyes, she could feel his eyes on her, confused by her actions, but he didn't need to know her reason. She knew he was awkward when it came to love, by kissing his cheek rather than his lips, like she really wanted to, she conveyed her feeling as well as giving him the chance to adjust to the idea of kissing. She hoped that he would soon, she's never had such a strong urge to kiss someone.

Even though he was thoroughly confused by Hinata's sudden kiss, he leaned back on his hands, Hinata still resting against his shoulder, he couldn't stop smiling. She kissed him, sure it was on the cheek, but this was definitely a good sign. Maybe he could kiss her too, or was it still too soon? He didn't know, but he really wanted to. He let out a sigh, refusing to think more upon it unless he wanted to throw his thoughts into a jumbling mass of confusion. For now he was content on how things were. The silence between the two was broken when a knock on the door was heard. Kiba popped his head in, a huge grin plastered on his face when he saw the lovely image of Hinata and Gaara together, enjoying, what had been, their solitude.

"So...I'm guessing everything has been cleared up?" Kiba asked with an expectant look.

"Hm." Gaara smiled up at Kiba, sitting up when Hinata rose.

"Good! Now, as much as I really don't want to ruin the comfortable mood, I must sadly bring you both back to reality. Gaara, have you filled her in yet?" The Inuzuka let out a heavy sigh when Gaara responded in the negative. "'Kay, you really need to tell her so you can prepare for Thursday, man."

"Thursday? Actually, that reminds me, I met Temari earlier today and she said something about Thursday being the deadline. What's that about?" Hinata asked her tanned companion.

"Sorry Hinata, but there's only two days to get everything ready and you guys have to get packing! Gaara can fill you in on your way home, okay?" Kiba answered as he began to nudge both Gaara and Hinata out, needing to prepare himself and Kankuro for the journey ahead of them. "Now get going, you crazy kids!"

"We're the same age!" Hinata pouted, but relented to his gentle nudging out the door nonetheless. Gaara was going to inform her anyway. Once they were out of Kiba's house and far enough to not even see it, Hinata turned to Gaara and asked what was going on.

"You see, in all honesty, I was confused about my feelings for you. I, when I finally realized that I was in love with you, asked Kiba and Shikamaru on what I should do. It was obvious I couldn't have that sort of relationship if I was to remain a slave, and we still wouldn't be accepted by your clan if you were to set me free. Being an ex-slave is reason enough for their began to think of ways to get approval from the clan. So we discussed all options, looking for any loopholes in all of them to come up with a plan more likely to succeed in getting the approval of everyone. Every single plan we made just didn't seem likely or even possible. The plans on getting Hiashi's blessings had been thrown out entirely, and not long in did the conversation drift to an escape plan for if you accepted my feelings."

"Escape plan?" Hinata raised a brow up at Gaara who looked away in embarrassment. She smiled. "And what is this escape plan? I'm assuming it has to do with the repeatedly mentioned Thursday."

"Hm. On Thursday your father will be leaving on negotiations to Iwa in the Earth Country and won't be back until Sunday, allowing us three days to flee to any place. Shikamaru is no fool, he knows very well Hiashi will never allow his heir to be with a slave, he knows that your father would hunt us down. Kiba, Kankurou, Shikamaru, and Temari, for their safety, are joining us as well, having assisted in the escape. No one else knew about our plan, so the Inuzuka clan and Nara clan are safe from Hiashi's wrath." Gaara inhaled and exhaled slowly. "Hinata, will you escape with me?" Gaara had long since stopped walking, regarding Hinata intently. He observed the way her eye lashes fluttered against her snowy skin, her pink soft lips curve into a smile before she raised a dainty hand to touch his larger, rougher one.

"Of course I will, why would I not after all that's happened? Oh, and you should say former-slave."

"Right. Hinata?"

"Yes, Gaara?"

"Can I kiss you?" Hinata blinked a few times, for a second thinking she might of misheard him.

"K-kiss?" She inwardly cursed herself for stuttering. The hand that was holding Gaara's was consumed by his, feeling the heat radiating from them seep into hers. She looked up at the red head, her eyes landing on his pale lips. They lifted to his jade eyes, then dropped again to linger on his lips. She wondered if they were soft or firm? Chapped or smooth? She wanted to kiss him.

"Hinata?"

"Please."

"Huh?" Gaara didn't hear what she had said, and leaned a tad closer to hear her more clearly.

"Please do." His breath hitched as she answered in an airy tone. He hesitated for a moment, encouraged by Hinata's smile. Gently he placed his hands on her waist, feeling the soft flesh under her clothing. She leaned closer into him, feeling his nervousness. "It's okay, Gaara." Her hands landed on his shoulders, she shut her eyes and waited.

When she shut her eyes, he mustered up the courage to tilt his head to one side and lean down to her. _So soft_, was the first thought he had when their lips made contact. He lingered, shutting his eyes when Hinata responded to him. Almost as if they had a mind of their own, their lips meshed together, attempting to connect more deeply and only separated when they need to rise for air. It had been an inexperienced kiss that had left Hinata flustered at the intensity that had been in their first real kiss. Her eyes turned up to find Gaara equally as flustered.

"We should get going, we need to pack," Hinata almost panted out, regaining her senses first. She took Gaara's hand and tugged him in the direction of the Huuga mansion to prepare.

xxx

Hinata stood outside of the prestigious Hyuuga compound, watching her father climb up into his couch and barking orders to his guards to finish packing his luggage to start heading out.

"All has been tied down securely sir, and a protective tarp placed to avoid damage from any type of weather," a servant announced to Hiashi, whose only indication of a response was a barely visible nod of the head. Hinata didn't move forward to give her father a departing word, but stood with her back straight, hands above her gleaming gray and navy blue silk kimono, radiating an air of quiet dignity that was expected whenever she was in the presence of her father. When the last guard disappeared ahead of the couch to scout ahead, the couch creaked forward and followed Hiashi's unseen guards.

"Finally," Hinata sighed out.

"What was that, Hinata-sama?" The servant asked as she was turning to return to her normal chores.

"It was nothing, continue on." The servant left and Hinata let out a relieved sigh. She calmly walked into the Hyuuga estate, making sure to not give away the growing excitement that was hidden inside her chest. It was Thursday after all. She looked both ways from the edge of her eyes, not wanting people to assume something was up by turning her head both ways to check for others, and entered the room. With the door closed, she smiled at her lover, who was busy folding and packing the little belongs he had, as well as hiding them in the deep within her closet to avoid detection from anyone who might be nosy. No one was supposed to be allowed into her room, but that didn't stop the maids from entering it to clean.

"Hinata, everything is done." Gaara announced as he exited the closet, shutting it behind him, and walking over to Hinata.

"Now what do we do?"

"We wait."

As inconspicuously as possible, Hinata went through the Hyuuga armory, sneaking away a few shuriken and ninja stars for their escape, not wanting to be at a disadvantage should the group meet rouge ninja or the occasional thief. Although the group was comprised of many ninja, that possessed high level techniques, it was better to be safe then sorry. Hiding the weapons in a small pouch stitched into the sleeve of her kimono, she went undisturbed by her fellow clansman as she returned to her room, stoping by the kitchen to take a small bowl of grapes as a snack for Gaara and her. The day wore on, dragging on slowly, practically driving both Gaara and Hinata insane with impatience when finally the sun decided to disappear behind the trees. They had to wait for nightfall before setting out, as it would be strange for the heiress to suddenly disappear in the middle of the day without notifying the guards or the servants to assure she was safe.

When everyone turned off their lights, Gaara decided it be best to wait an hour before heading for the woods, wanting to make sure everyone was asleep, or drowsy enough to believe that any noise they heard was just a part of the usual sounds you would hear outside. When Hinata confirmed that everyone was under by using her byakugan, she carried her pack on her back. Gaara quickly took hold of his own and gripped the large duffel bags in his hands, before Hinata could complain, he launched himself out the window, feeling the muscles stretch in his arms to keep his balance between the back, and those in his legs bracing for the impact of the ground. Hinata followed, her landing more elegant from the years of training she had endured, making no noise as she ran behind Gaara who was already heading for the trees to meet at the secret hiding spot everyone had agreed on.

They ran for a straight ten minutes into dense foliage, jumping into the trees when it grew to arduous to plow through the bushes, and finally they saw a rocky side, with tufts of grass, and blooming flowers growing around the edge of the waterfall that wore the rock down. Hinata loved this place, it was special as it proved a comfort to just sit near to hear the water lap at the earth's edge. As they drew closer, they could see the familiar figures of Kiba, Shikamaru, Temari, and Kankuro.

"Hinata, Gaara, finally! Took you long enough, we were all thinking that the clan might have found out, or something." Kiba joked, though you could still hear the worry in his voice.

"Sorry, we just wanted to make sure no one was awake." Gaara replied, placing the bags on the ground to stretch out his arms and avoid over straining them.

"I see that the training has benefited you greatly, huh, little bro!" Kankuro complimented as he saw the results of the Kiba's regiment of daily training during Gaara's stay. Gaara wasn't ripped, but muscled evenly, more sinewy, and this magnificently hid deadly strength underneath the pale skin. He should know, he's had some friendly brawling with Gaara, and on more than one occasion his little brother has almost strangled him by accident.

"Yeah, yeah! We all know Gaara's not a sack of bones anymore, now come on, we have to get going before dawn. We don't want the entire Hyuuga clan waking up and finding their heiress missing from her bed." Temari ordered everyone to check their gear and packs for any supplies they might be missing and to check that they have all survival gear in good condition. When everyone rechecked, and repacked everything, Temari signaled it was time to leave, but just as she was heading south, she turned to Shikamaru and gave him a strange look. "So where are we headed?"

Shikamaru knew what she was going to ask, and yet he had desperately hoped that she wouldn't. He turned to the blond, maintaining a calm expression as he stared into her turquoise eyes. "We're heading for Suna of the Wind Country." It was like the air had gone cold.

"Are you fucking kidding me! We can't head there! You know the shit that's happened there, not just for the people, but my brothers and me. I'm not heading back there, choose anywhere, just not there."

"Temari..." Shikamaru started.

"Not there." Everyone turned to see a raging look pass on Gaara's usually stoic face. Being an expression she wasn't accustomed to, Hinata actually took a step back, feeling uneasy all of a sudden. Gaara took note of it and schooled his face to regain its calm composure, his hand gently taking hold of Hinata's smaller one and guiding her back to his side. "Why the Wind Country?"

"Yeah, you know how much I hate that place, especially Suna."

"Look, Temari, I know that your hate for Suna sprouted because your father was this abusive tyrant who could do nothing but hurt and enslave his own children and make work his people to death, but-"

"Wait, how do you know about that?" Temari screeched. She hadn't told him anything involving her _father_. Gods, she hated that word: _father_. Temari wasn't the only one seething, Kankuro's discomfort and hate was visible while Gaara's, who tried to look calm, frowned and glared at Shikamaru.

"Temari, when you came under my roof for the first time, do you honestly think I wouldn't look into your background? I didn't know you and I obviously didn't trust you, not like I do now. I actually bribed the man who brought you to Konoha on who was your previous owner. When I learned that it was the Fourth Kazekage, who had _supposedly_ lost his three children, two sons and a daughter, due to disease, I had gotten a vague idea of who you were. My assumption was confirmed when I met Kankuro and Gaara, your brothers. After that, everything fell into place."

"Could have been a coincidence, that he had the two sons and a daughter. What makes you so sure we're his kids?" Kankuro asked, his eyes narrowed at Shikamaru.

"I've gone on missions to Suna, I've seen what the Kazekage looks like. You can deny it, but physical similarities don't." Was the genius' response.

"How can you tell he was abusive?" Gaara asked out of the blue, not really looking at him, but rather staring into the haze that keeps traumatizing events away.

"Gaara, you, Temari, and Kankuro have deep emotional scars that although you won't usually show it, it does come out in your behavior. Whenever you three even hear the name Wind Country or Suna, you have this look of utter rage. A few times I've heard Temari cry in her sleep, she'd have nightmares about it."

"And Kankuro too!" Kiba input.

"And so did I." Gaara admitted, seeing that it was no use hiding it any longer now that Shikamaru had put it all together. Hinata saw the troubled look in his eyes, and gave him a reassuring hug, not saying anything, and relying on him to figure out what she meant by it. Showing he understood, Gaara returned the embrace, rocking side to side a little as a way to clam himself down. "Since you know this, then why escape to Suna?"

"I chose Suna because, for the past few months there has been a civil war going on in Suna. Tsunade had informed me on what happened when Hinata and Shino went on a reconnaissance mission to Suna. It seems that Konoha's top ranked rouge ninja, Orochimaru had been hiding out there and killed the Kazekage."

"Wh-what?" Temari looked wide eyed at Shikamaru, her eyes demanding an answer.

"It's true Temari-chan," Hinata spoke. "It seemed that the Kazekage had planned on launching a war with Konoha, but Orochimaru was the one pulling the strings and killed him to slip into our village with the pretext of negotiating on extended trade to one another. Because he killed him before the war, rather than waiting, he wasn't able to simulate the Kazekage and was discover almost immediately. Given, Orochimaru is powerful, but one man is no match against an army of shinobi and he was forced to flee to another country."

"Because of this there is no leader to take control of the government. The people are confused and rioting because the council is doing a horrid job of keeping the peace, especially since all the noble families in Suna are constantly fighting for leadership. It's practically a blood bath." Shikamaru finished.

"Our family has been in power for centuries, and it can only be passed down to the children of the person in power. With no heirs, and no Kazekage it would only result in chaos. The council was created to prevent this, but they're a bunch of old fools." Temari gave a heavy sigh and swiped a hand over her face. "Since it's you, your plan was to sneak in and take advantage of this internal war, right?"

"Hm. The Hyuuga will never be able to enter since it's very likely that they'll be attacked on sight since they are from Konoha."

"Then wouldn't they attack us, Shikamaru?" Kiba asked after listening intently to the genius.

"No."

"Huh? Why not?" Kiba raised his brow at Shikamaru's short reply.

"We have them." Shikamaru indicated Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari. "After all, who would attack the lost heirs of the deceased Kazekage?"

_A/N: This is the longest chapter I've written thus far, I hope you enjoyed. Until the final chapter!_

_-Baron_


	6. Freedom part 2

_A/N: Last chapter guys! Can you believe it? Well, for the last time I DON'T OWN NARUTO AND THE PLOT BELONGS TO MONCOLLEFAN365!_

Gaara didn't like this plan, mainly out of the fact that he was to return 'home'. It's been so long since he's been in Suna, and he didn't know what to expect. The little group that made up their caravan had been walking for about two days now, and as they grew closer, he could see his siblings' faces grow grimmer. Gaara was sure that he too had a similar expression. As they walked on, and finally entered into the Wind Country, Shikamaru decided it was a good time and spot to camp.

The area was barren of life, the ground crusted and cracked, and if they had gone another mile, the land would be covered in golden sand. The sun was blazing now, making it too hot to travel. The siblings had little issue with the heat, as well as Hinata, as she's been in Suna for a time, but Kiba and Shikamaru were dying. When they stopped Kiba was panting, his tongue lolling out of his mouth, begging for water. Shikamaru had walked along with the others stoically, but when they stopped, he helped pitch the tents, told Temari something, and then immediately dropped with a thud. Everyone looked shocked, except for Temari, who just sighed and proceeded to drag the young genius into their tent. When everything was done, they took refuge inside, resting until the sun was low.

"Hinata?"

"Yes, Gaara?" Hinata mumbled, her head resting against her arms as she laid back to catch some sleep.

"Is he really dead?" Hinata turned to him when she noticed how his voice trembled. Her heart went out to him when she saw how gray he looked, even his dark circles seemed darker and looked like they had sunken into his head.

"Gaara, I would never let him hurt you if he was alive. I would never let anyone hurt you." She turned her entire body towards him, let a hand stroke his cheek and planted a quick kiss on his lips. His face regained some of its former pallor and relaxed a little, but Hinata could still see the fear. The closer they came to Suna, the clearer it became.

Gaara was strong, how else would he have survived the ordeals of a slave, but she knew he couldn't do it all alone. "Gaara, we'll protect you." Gaara looked at her curiously, then bravely wrapped his arm around her waist. Hinata shut her eyes, enjoying the closeness. A tingling feeling radiated from the top of her head and down to her toes. It was something that could only be described as soft, warm, and sweet.

_Love._

xxx

It would be another day and a half before they would make it to Suna. It would have just been half a day had it not been for the deep sand they had to trudge through. It made traveling far slower than before, and uncomfortable. When they could finally see the protective walls of Suna, the sun was beating on them at full strength, and the sand was sinking them deeper into the ground.

"Finally! We're...almost...there." Kiba announced exhaustedly. "Please...have air conditioning!" He practically pleaded to the heavens.

"Don't worry, Kiba-kun, they do. Come on, we're almost there." Hinata encourage, smiling up at him.

"Is he always this dramatic?" Temari asked as she leaned into Kankuro's ear. Her brother just answered with 'sometimes.'

Gaara grew nervous and took hold of Hinata's hand. It was no longer out of fear, but for comfort. He just needed to feel the smoothness of her skin to assure himself. He was free now, and he was no longer afraid.

As they marched on, a carriage was making its way towards them. Two tan stallions galloped at high speed, kicking up the sand behind them. A man looked at them and shouted, probably to the person inside the carriage, and out from the small window appeared the passenger's head.

"Oh shit." Kiba gulped. He moved on the opposite side of Hinata, Kankuro following close behind. Shikamaru and Temari stood in front of the group, watching the carriage stop abruptly in front of them. The door swung open and Hiashi climbed out. He frowned as he sunk into the sand, but ignored it as he turned to glare at the small group.

"Hinata!" He called, having heard from his driver that he saw his daughter. He admitted that he thought the man was lying, but when the man continued to screech at him that it was, he looked out his window to have it confirmed. Having seen Hinata, he was now furious. How dare she flee the Hyuuga, he thought. Hinata walked forward, her back straight, her face as blank as she regarded him.

"Father." She said blandly. The longer he stared, the stricter her stance became. "Why are you returning three days early?"

"My carriage had been hijacked, and all the paperwork ruined. I had to buy a more modest carriage to avoid a repeat of the event as I returned for new copies. To think I wold find my daughter betraying her clan and country. Get in the carriage, we are returning to Konoha before you disgrace yourself further." Hiashi ordered, but was ignored. "Hinata! Now!"

"No."

"What?" Hiashi couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Defiant child!" He marched towards her, barred from her by Shikamaru and Temari. "Move!"

"She's not going anywhere." Temari hissed at Hiashi. He glared at the blond woman, but his eyes widened in recognition.

"You! You are the Nara's slave." Temari thought of correcting him, that she was their former slave, but she was positive the man wouldn't give a damn. Hiashi looked at the individual members that made up their caravan, recognizing everyone, especially Gaara who was holding his daughter's hand. "Release her, filth! Hinata, we leave now!"

"Hinata has made it very clear that she does not wish to leave with you." Gaara responded calmly.

"Shut your mouth, mongrel! She leaves with me!" Hiashi reached out and took hold of Hinata's wrist tightly.

"Gaara is not a mongrel!" Hinata tried to wretch her hand away, but he held her in an iron grip. "Let go!"

"She said to let her go!" Temari shoved Hiashi away, causing him to stumble back. The Hyuuga head looked at her with shock and rage.

"How dare you! Guards, bring me their heads!" Four ninja that had previously been hidden in the carriage circled the group. Sneering at the younger ninja.

"Stay close!" Shikamaru commanded, the group huddling close to each other, their backs to one another.

The ninja weren't the ones that had originally traveled with her father, and Hinata assumed that they had either been sent ahead to explain why her father never made it, or dead from battling the ninja that hijacked the carriage. She didn't know which, but this proved an advantage. Being hired ninja meant they knew little of who they faced, and would very likely attack them head on.

Like a prediction, the ninja charged the group, kunais griped in one hand, the other to their side to keep their balance in the sand. Shikamaru sent his shadows forward and caught two, paralyzing them. The other two took notice and managed to jump away from the shifting shadows. One with a ragged beard eyed Shikamaru and launched at him, knowing that if he attacked him it would release the jutsu. As he drew near, dodging Kiba and Kankuro, he drew his kunai back.

"No you don't!" Temari sent him tumbling into the sand, having punched him square in the jaw. She couldn't use jutsu well like Kankuro or Gaara, having not figured out her specialty yet, but she had enough strength to provide help. Plus the weapons that Hinata managed to sneak out helped significantly too.

The assailant stood, spitting out a tooth. "Fucking bitch." He growled at her, turning to his companion for back up only to find him doing a funky dance. "What the hell are you doing?" He yelled.

"Sorry, your pal just couldn't help it." Kankuro responded, his fingers twirling the man in the air. He was grateful to Kiba for helping him manipulate chakra. The man yelped in fear as Kankuro made his body shoot high into the air and then abruptly to the ground. The sand ceased his cries of terror as grains chocked him.

The bearded ninja cursed as he looked at his other companions. The ones that had been caught first become useless when Shikamaru froze them in place and Kiba took the liberty of beating them atop the head, knocking them unconscious. His only other fellow ninja was already down for the count when Kankuro finally decided to just launch him towards Temari, who punched the flying man in the gut. He was all that was left. He rose and attacked the closest one, he threw himself at Temari.

"Oh, what am I ever to do!" Temari let out sarcastically, a grin plastered on her face when the man was stopped by chakra strings which attached themselves to his limbs, and sand shackled his ankles.

Both brothers glared at the man. "Don't touch our sister." The last thing the man felt was the sand rumble beneath him and launch him far into the sky. His body couldn't handle the force of his fall that he had died long before he reached the ground.

"Hey, where's Hinata?" Kiba asked, looking around for the Hyuuga.

"She's over there!" Kankuro pointed in the direction of the carriage, Hinata was battling it out with Hiashi. From afar she seemed to be doing well, but as the group neared, they noticed bruises on her arms.

"Hinata!" Gaara ran faster as he saw Hiashi dodge a palm strike and swept her feet from beneath her.

"I should just kill you for this, you've shamed me enough." Hinata glared up at her father defiantly. She yanked on his ankle, causing him to fall back into the sand. "Wretched girl!" Hinata tackled him to the ground before he could stand again, grabbed the dropped kunai and pressed it against her father's jugular.

"Leave this place." Hinata panted out, exhausted, but proud that she had managed to best her own father.

"Child, it's a hundred years too soon for you to beat me." Hinata gasped when a clone grabbed her from behind and stabbed her side. She cried out in pain, but refused to let tears escape. In the moment she had been pulled away, the clone had taken away her kunai and threw it to her father. "You are still weak." Hiashi threw the kunai at her heart, the clone again aiming to stab her side. Hinata shut her eyes, but opened them to find a wall of sand in front of her, and the clone's hand chained.

"You will not hurt her." Gaara growled, his eyes gleaming in a way Hinata didn't know they could. Gaara was out for blood.

"Release me!" Hinata couldn't see before, but when the wall of sand that guarded her dissipated she saw that her father had been chained as well. "Release me!" Hiashi shouted again. He struggled but it got him no where, and as the red head stalked closer, the unfamiliar sensation of fear spread like a poison through him.

"You don't deserve to be a father." Gaara knew what this man was, he was just like his father. No, he didn't deserve to be a father. "You should just die." Hiashi's eyes widened in fear as Gaara grinned at him.

"Gaara, wait!" Hinata cried out. She hated her father, but she knew killing him wasn't the answer.

The sand slid around Hiashi's body, covering him entirely, sparing his face. Gaara motioned with his hand to raise the sand in the air. His palm was open, but he knew that once he clenched it, Hiashi would no longer exist in this world. "Gaara." The red head blinked when a tender hand placed itself in his open palm.

"Hinata." She was looking up into his eyes, silently pleading that he stop. "Why?"

"Gaara, this isn't the way to go. He isn't your father, and killing him won't give you the satisfaction as if he was." Hinata intertwined their fingers, lowering his arm to his side. "You're better than this." She leaned against him, her head resting against his shoulder.

Gaara looked down at her, his eyes drifting to her frightened father. He scowled at the man, wanting to crush him to a pulp, but resigned himself to dropping him.

Hiashi gasped and coughed when he was released, the sand had been tightly packed around his neck, which had made it hard to breath. He looked up and saw Gaara's looming figure. He jumped up and backed away slowly.

"Leave, and if I should ever see you again, I will not hesitate to kill you." Gaara appeared calm enough, but he didn't hide the acid of his tone. Hiashi backed away, making it to his carriage, shooting one last glare at the group before telling his shaken driver to continue to Konoha.

The rest of the group made their way to the couple, examining and bandaging wounds. Hinata sighed in exhaustion, she's never felt so physically and emotionally drained before. Gaara noticed and tried to soothe her by rubbing her back gently, earning a warm smile from her.

"Guys." Everyone turned to Shikamaru who was staring at the direction of Suna. "We've got company."

A whirl of sand signaled the arrival of two Suna ninja, each looked imposing, their faces blank masks. "We spotted a battle and came to investigate," a man with a brown goatee started, his eyes locking with Shikamaru, who he assumed was the leader. "It seems it's over."

"We are not allowing anyone into Suna," another man piped up, "due to national unrest we insist that you leave for your own safety."

"Then we shall settle it." Shikamaru replied to the tanned individual. The man looked at him oddly, unsure if he should be amused or not. He scanned the rest of the group, his eyes widening a fraction.

"This one seems full of himself, don't you agree Baki? Baki?" The man with the goatee stared at his companion, confused by his shocked expression. "Baki, hey!"

Baki walked through the group, not noticing the Konoha ninja tensing before Shikamaru signaled that it was okay. The broad figure stopped before Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari, dropped to one knee and bowed his head.

"My lords, you've returned."

"HUH?"

"Pay the proper respect to your leaders, Mito!" Baki growled to the man, who, once his brain managed to absorb what was happening, did the same as Baki.

"Forgive me for not realizing! I-I didn't believe you were still alive. W-we all thought that you had died long ago, my lords." Mito announced nervously.

"No, we've," Temari sighed before continuing, "we've just been gone a long time." She didn't feel like explaining what really happened, that their own father had sold them into slavery. Her siblings looked at her gratefully, they didn't want it known either.

"Please, let us escort you to your proper places. Your presence will be welcomed, and order will return. Everything shall be as it once was, my lords." Baki rose, guiding the siblings as Mito gathered their belongings.

"No."

"Lord Gaara?" Baki stared at the red head, wondered what he meant by 'no'.

"Things will not be the same, there will be change. Certain laws will be made, and crimes punished properly for unrighteous behavior." Baki stared at the youth, noticing how he stood straight and proud, a voice clear and demanding everyone's attention, his demeanor exuding power. Whether he knew it or not, he was the perfect leader.

"Yes, Lord Gaara." Baki smiled as he turned to lead the siblings away.

"Sorry, but you can't come along." Mito stood in front of the Konoha nin, stopping them from following. "We are grateful, but you still can't enter. Not until things are settled at least." The siblings turned and gave Mito a look.

"Let them pass." Gaara commanded, returning to Hinata's side.

"Why?" Mito let out before he could stop himself.

"Because they're our lovers." The siblings stated matter-of-factly simultaneously, each standing by said lovers.

"Oh-oh! F-forgive me!" Mito flushed slightly, though you could hardly tell. Baki just smiled, and nodded his head at his silly companion.

xxx

It took three whole months before the people finally settled, the nobles' complaints lowered to a dull roar, and the Kazekage was chosen from amongst the siblings.

Gaara had been shocked at first, believing he didn't deserve such power, but his siblings assured him that he was perfect and would be a great leader. They just knew he would, and he was. Everyone in his staff helped him understand what his role entailed, and explained how he went about business. Had Hinata not been with him every step of the way, comforting and clarifying what he didn't understand, he felt he would've not been able to meet the council or the people's expectations. His siblings were already doing much to take part in improving and aiding the government by becoming ambassadors. Even Kiba and Shikamaru were contributing by helping either in education or patrol. Gaara felt he should also give equal effort to his occupation.

Hinata, well, Gaara kept her close to get a second opinion, but when she was away she helped around the village, and was an apprentice to a medical nin. Currently though, to Gaara's dismay, Konoha has sent many notices from the Hokage that the Hyuuga clan was growing rebellious, and that they wouldn't settle until the traitor, Hinata, was returned to receive proper punishment.

No way was he returning her to them, but he didn't want to cause the Hokage trouble either. He called on Shikamaru, who, in his eyes, was like an advisor. Sure, he had a council now, but none could match the knowledge of the Nara male. He informed him of the issue, and was advised on how to maneuver the situation in his favor.

"This will work, correct?" Gaara asked the Nara as he leaned back in his chair.

"Undoubtedly." Shikamaru smirked before he stood. "Hey, how's that new law coming along? Has it been approved yet?"

"Some of the council members are still discussing it, but essentially it's been approved. I've not heard a single complaint about it." Gaara announced, his tone pleased.

"Good, it was about time a nation banned slavery. Really, who thought owning a person was right?" Shikamaru snorted in disgust.

"Most likely someone that thought it would be a great way of making a profit." Gaara gave an equally disgusted scowl.

"Alright, well, make sure to do what I said."

"Right." Shikamaru gave a single wave before leaving, he needed to unpack, he's moving in with his bride after all.

Gaara leaned over his desk already replaying Shikamaru's words. He'll have to have a chat with Hiashi, and he wasn't going to like it. At least he'll get to see the man fume, and that'll be quite the treat.

After a week of sending notices and getting signatures approved, the Hokage finally sent word that Hiashi was indeed going to Suna to meet with Gaara. The Hokage hinted in his letter that it had taken a threat to get the Hyuuga leader to agree to a meeting with the Kazekage, and it brought a smirk to Gaara's face.

Three days later Hiashi appeared before his desk, the man was rigid with fear, and his brave face was betrayed by the way his eyes shifted in every direction.

"Hiashi-san, I've been eagerly awaiting this meeting so that we can finally get this over with."

"Yes, indeed." Hiashi sat down in his chair when Gaara motioned him to, momentarily flashing back to the time he had done the same motion to cocoon him in sand. A shiver went traveled up his spin. It felt like sand just brushed against the back of his neck. Had he been focusing, he would have noticed the tiny smirk on Gaara's face, that quickly disappeared when he looked at him again.

"This meeting obviously concerns your daughter."

"Yes, I'm expecting her returned to me immediately." Hiashi growled, but whatever reaction he was expecting to receive, he was only rewarded with a blank stare.

"I do not plan on returning her to you, and already have paperwork signed, not just by my council, but the Hokage's as well, stating that she will be taken in as a citizen of Suna."

"What!" Hiashi bolted out of his seat, earning a cool stare from Gaara.

"Of course, I'll need your permission." Again, Gaara motioned Hiashi to sit, but the man refused.

"Never." Hiashi hissed. "She has shamed our clan enough. She's betrayed her country by leaving with a _slave_. If others were to hear of this, we would be the laughing stock among the Hidden Villages! You will produce my daughter now,_ Kazekage-sama_, to receive punishment!"

Gaara sighed, he didn't get what was with the man and wanting to punish her, and the slave remark was a very bad choice. Oh well. "But you're doing that well enough by yourself, if not worse."

"What are you saying?"

"Hinata has done nothing wrong really, she has been away on mission on orders by the Hokage to aid Suna, so she is no traitor to your country as you've mentioned. As for escaping with a slave, she was just returning the rightful heir to his home, and thus held in high regard by our nobility and citizens, as well as other nations that may have heard of it. You on the other hand have been the one to bring me to your home to suffer hateful verbal abuse, not just by you, but by your fellow clansmen, Hinata being the exception. Then you proceeded to insult me, the Kazekage mind you, in my own office. I could very much take you as a representative of Konoha, and declare war for the offence. Who would be the traitor to their country then?"

Hiashi's mouth gaped, unable to find words to say or retort. He gulped loudly at Gaara's words, anger boiling inside him when he caught an amused glimmer in the red head's eyes. "You wouldn't do that!"

"Wouldn't I? Half a year ago I wouldn't have thought I would almost kill you, yet three months ago I do just that. So, what do you think I would do?" Hiashi went silent, his knuckles turning white as he clutched the chair's arms in a death grip. Gaara pulled out the paperwork, from his desk and placed it in front of Hiashi, a quill and ink well ready. "So what shall it be?"

Hiashi looked at Gaara one last time before taking hold of the quill, scowling as he neatly scribbled his name on the contract.

"So be it." Gaara swiped the paper away and smirked at the man.

"Good choice."

_A/N: Done! Thank you to those who have read and reviewed this story, and to Moncollefan365 for giving me the opportunity to finish her story. I actually had a lot of funny doing this last chapter, and am sad it over. I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I have._

_-Baron_


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